27.04.202615:54:04UTC+00FTSE 100 Falls to 4-Week Low

The FTSE 100 fell 0.5% on Monday, closing at a four-week low as investors remained cautious ahead of developments in US–Iran relations and prepared for a busy week of corporate earnings and central bank meetings. Energy and consumer stocks dragged on the index, with Shell down around 1.8%, Unilever off 1.1% and British American Tobacco losing 1.5%. GSK, Rio Tinto and Glencore also declined.

By contrast, AstraZeneca, Rolls-Royce and BAE Systems recorded modest gains, helping to limit the overall downside. Attention is now turning to a series of major policy decisions from the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Bank of Japan, Bank of Canada and Bank of England, all scheduled for this week. At the same time, the earnings season is gathering pace, with results due from Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and NatWest Group, along with updates from AstraZeneca, GSK and Unilever.